Your consumer rights

Whether we purchase goods from a shop, another person, or across the internet, we have legal rights as consumers. We also have rights when we hire goods or enter into a hire-purchase agreement or buy goods on credit.

When we buy goods, we enter into a contract with the seller. This creates certain rights in law. The rights we have differ according to the situation. There are, however, some basic principles. The following is a high-level overview of some of the rights we have as consumers.

Fit for Purpose

Under the Sale of Goods Act 1979, the goods must be ‘as described’, ‘of satisfactory quality’, and ‘fit for purpose’.

‘Fit for purpose’ means fit for the purpose for which they are intended, for example, waterproof boots should not leak. ‘As described’ means they must match any description in a brochure or sample shown in the shop.

If the goods you have bought are faulty for any of the three reasons outlined above, then you have a right as a consumer to a remedy.

You can return the goods and get your money back. The law says you must do this within a ‘reasonable’ time. You are therefore advised to act fast. What is considered ‘reasonable’ varies according to the circumstances and how obvious the fault is.

You can ask the retailer to repair or replace the goods. Here, the retailer must repair or replace ‘within a reasonable time but without causing significant inconvenience’ under the Sale of Goods Act. If he or she does not do this then you are entitled to a reduction on the purchase price or your money back minus an amount for the use you’ve had of the goods.

If the retailer refuses to repair or replace, then you can ask someone else to repair it and send the bill to the retailer.

If you and the retailer still can’t agree, then you can sue them for compensation.

If you pay for your goods by credit card then you may be able to enforce your rights against your credit card company as well as the retailer, by asking for your money back.

Misleading advertising

Retailers have to conform to certain standards when advertising their goods. They can’t for example, give a misleading impression about the rights of the consumer, or incorrectly say that something is available only for a limited amount of time. Equally, retailers can’t advertise a product and then show you a different product when you ask about it.

If you have a concern about the way a retailer is advertising their goods, you can contact the Advertising Standards Authority (www.asa.org.uk) and make a formal complaint. 

Door-to-Door Salespeople

Door-to-Door Salespeople can be among the most persuasive people on earth, and can sometimes lull you into such a state of boredom that you will sign anything just to get rid of them.

If so, what are your rights?

Don’t despair if you’ve just signed up to buy double glazing that you can’t afford or don’t need, because you have the right to a seven-day ‘cooling off’ period. This applies regardless of whether you invited the sales person to call. The goods in question must be more than £35, and ‘doorstep selling’ simply means outside of trade premises. These rights therefore apply as long as the sales person came to see you at your home, workplace, or other premises rather than you calling on them at their office.

The sales person must tell you, in writing, about this seven-day period in which you have the right to change your mind. If they don’t, then you can cancel your order at any time and get your money back.

Be on your guard, however, because if you ask in writing for the goods to be supplied before the end of the cooling off period, then you may have to pay a reasonable price for them even if you decide to cancel.  

Online Purchases

When you buy over the internet, you have a seven-day cooling off period to return the goods, starting from when they arrive.

If you buy from a UK or EU-based company then you have the same rights as if you’d bought from a shop—they must be ‘fit for purpose’, ‘as described’ and of ‘satisfactory quality’.

If they’re not, then you have a right to send the goods back within a reasonable time in return for a refund. Or, you can demand a repair or replacement.

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